# Duleep Trophy

The Duleep Trophy, is a domestic First Class Cricket competition played in India. Named after former cricketer Duleepsinhji, the competition has largely been contested by teams representing various geographical zones of India since the first edition in 1961–62, with some editions featuring special invitee teams.
There have been a few exceptions to the zonal format, such as the 2002–03 tournament, where five teams were formed based on Ranji Trophy groups, and the four editions held between 2016–17 and 2019–20, when the BCCI selected three teams called India Blue, Red and Green. The latest 2024-25 edition featured four teams named Team A, B, C and D.

## History

The competition was established by the BCCI in the 1961–62 season. The tournament was contested between the different geographical zones of India namely, North, South, East, West and Central. The inaugural tournament was won by West Zone who defeated South Zone in the final by ten wickets. In the 1962–63 season, four of the five teams except Central Zone included a West Indies Test cricketer as a part of the teams.
The original format was that the five teams played each other on a knock-out basis. From the 1993–94 season, the competition converted to a league format before moving back to the knock-out format for four seasons. The tournament again reverted to a league format for three seasons from 2000–01. For the 2002–03 season, the zonal teams were replaced by five teams representing respective Ranji Trophy groups but the format lasted only one season. From the 2003–04 season, the five original zonal teams competed along with a sixth guest team which was a touring foreign team. The first guest team was England A in 2003–04. From the 2009-10 season, the guest team was dropped, with the original five-team knockout tournament being used until the 2014–15 season.
The championship was not held in 2015–16 but returned to in 2016–17 with a new format where three teams chosen by the BCCI took part, designated as Blue, Green and Red. The teams played a round-robin tournament, with the top two advancing to the final. All games were staged as day-night games and used pink cricket balls. The trophy was cancelled for three seasons due to Covid-19 and the zonal format returned when it was re-started in 2022-23 with the original five zonal teams joined by a new North East Zone.
The 2024-2025 Duleep Trophy marks the 61st edition of the this prestigious tournament, organized by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The tournament scheduled from 5 September 2024 to 22 September 2024, the matches will be held at the Rural Development Trust (RDT) Stadium in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh, and M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
The 2024-2025 format deviates from recent editions by featuring four teams: India A, India B, India C, and India D, instead of the traditional zonal teams. The tournament will follow a round-robin format with no knockout stage. Notable Players participating include Surya Kumar Yadav,, Tilak Varma, Ishaan Kishan, Shubman Gill, Mayank Agarwal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Ruturaj Gaikwad, KL Rahul, Rishab Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Khaleel Ahmed, and Mohammad Siraj.
Format and Points System for 2024-2025: Each team will play against three teams once, and the team with the maximum points at the end of the round-robin stage will be crowned the champions. The squads for the first round were announced by the BCCI on August 14, 2024, with subsequent squad updates on September 10, 2024. The teams are composed of a mix of experienced and emerging players selected by national selectors.
Points System:
* Win by 10 wickets or an innings: 7 points
* Win by any other margin: 6 points
* Draw with first-innings lead: 3 points
* Draw without first-innings lead: 1 point
* Tie: 3 points each
* Loss: 0 points
The teams with the highest points at the end of the round-robin stage will be declared the champions.
| Team | Captains |
| India A | Captained by Shubman Gill (later replaced by Mayank Agarwal due to international duties) |
| India B | Captained by Abhimanyu Easwaran |
| India C | Captained by Ruturaj Gaikwad |
| India D | Captained by Shreyas Iyer. |

## Composition of teams

Each zonal team is a composite team of cricketers who play for the Ranji Trophy teams situated in that region of India. The teams which compose each zone are as follows:
* North Zone
** Chandigarh
** Delhi
** Haryana
** Himachal Pradesh
** Jammu & Kashmir
** Punjab
** Services
* South Zone
** Andhra Pradesh
** Goa
** Hyderabad
** Karnataka
** Kerala
** Pondicherry
** Tamil Nadu
* Central Zone
** Chhattisgarh
** Madhya Pradesh
** Railways
** Rajasthan
** Uttarakhand
** Uttar Pradesh
** Vidarbha
* East Zone
** Assam
** Bihar
** Bengal
** Jharkhand
** Odisha
** Tripura
* North East Zone
** Arunachal Pradesh
** Manipur
** Meghalaya
** Mizoram
** Nagaland
** Sikkim
* West Zone
** Baroda
** Gujarat
** Maharashtra
** Mumbai
** Saurashtra

## Winners

West Zone, with 19 trophies, is the most successful team in the competition. South Zone are the defending champions.
| Season | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| Season | Winner | Runner-up | Result | Final venue |
| 1961–62 | West Zone | South Zone | West Zone won by 10 wickets | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1962–63 | West Zone | South Zone | West Zone won by an Innings and 20 runs | Eden Gardens, Calcutta |
| 1963–64 | West Zone & South Zone (shared) | West Zone & South Zone (shared) | Draw | Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi |
| 1964–65 | West Zone | Central Zone | West Zone won by an innings and 89 runs | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1965–66 | South Zone | Central Zone | South Zone won by an innings and 20 runs | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Madras |
| 1966–67 | South Zone | West Zone | Draw, South Zone won by first innings lead | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1967–68 | South Zone | West Zone | Draw, South Zone won by first innings lead | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1968–69 | West Zone | South Zone | Draw, West Zone won by first innings lead | Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Hyderabad |
| 1969–70 | West Zone | North Zone | West Zone won by an innings and 81 runs | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad |
| 1970–71 | South Zone | East Zone | South Zone won by 10 wickets | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1971–72 | Central Zone | West Zone | Central Zone by 2 wickets | Central College Ground, Bangalore |
| 1972–73 | West Zone | Central Zone | West Zone won by an innings and 172 runs | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1973–74 | North Zone | Central Zone | North Zone won by 76 runs | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1974–75 | South Zone | West Zone | South Zone won by 9 wickets | Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Hyderabad |
| 1975–76 | South Zone | North Zone | South Zone won by 37 runs | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Madras |
| 1976–77 | West Zone | North Zone | West Zone won by 9 wickets | Moti Bagh Stadium, Baroda |
| 1977–78 | West Zone | North Zone | Draw, West Zone won by first innings lead | Wankhede Stadium, Bombay |
| 1978–79 | North Zone | West Zone | Draw, North Zone won by first innings lead | Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi |
| 1979–80 | North Zone | West Zone | North Zone won by 104 runs | Wankhede Stadium, Bombay |
| 1980–81 | West Zone | East Zone | Draw, West Zone won by first innings lead | Eden Gardens, Calcutta |
| 1981–82 | West Zone | East Zone | Draw, West Zone won by first innings lead | Brabourne Stadium, Bombay |
| 1982–83 | North Zone | South Zone | North Zone won by 8 wickets | Wankhede Stadium, Bombay |
| 1983–84 | North Zone | West Zone | Draw, North Zone won by first innings lead | Barabati Stadium, Cuttack |
| 1984–85 | South Zone | North Zone | South Zone won by 73 runs | Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi |
| 1985–86 | West Zone | South Zone | West Zone by 9 wickets | M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore |
| 1986–87 | South Zone | West Zone | Draw, South Zone won by first innings lead | Wankhede Stadium, Bombay |
| 1987–88 | North Zone | West Zone | Draw, North Zone won by first innings lead | Jayanti Stadium, Bhilai |
| 1988–89 | North Zone & West Zone (shared) | North Zone & West Zone (shared) | Draw | Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi |
| 1989–90 | South Zone | Central Zone | South Zone won by 322 runs | Gymkhana Ground, Secunderabad |
| 1990–91 | North Zone | West Zone | Draw, North Zone won by first innings lead | Keenan Stadium, Jamshedpur |
| 1991–92 | North Zone | West Zone | North Zone won by 236 runs | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium, Valsad |
| 1992–93 | North Zone | Central Zone | Draw, North Zone won by first innings lead | Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Hyderabad |
| 1993–94 | North Zone | West Zone | Round Robin | NA |
| 1994–95 | North Zone | South Zone | Round Robin | NA |
| 1995–96 | South Zone | Central Zone | Round Robin | NA |
| 1996–97 | Central Zone | South Zone | Central Zone won by 161 runs | Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali |
| 1997–98 | Central Zone & West Zone (shared) | Central Zone & West Zone (shared) | Draw | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai |
| 1998–99 | Central Zone | West Zone | Central Zone won by 122 runs | N2 Stadium, Aurangabad |
| 1999–2000 | North Zone | West Zone | Draw, North Zone won by first innings lead | Eden Gardens, Kolkata |
| 2000–01 | North Zone | Central Zone | Round Robin | NA |
| 2001–02 | West Zone | North Zone | Round Robin | NA |
| 2002–03 | Elite C | Plate Group B | Round Robin | NA |
| 2003–04 | North Zone | East Zone | North Zone won by 59 runs | Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali |
| 2004–05 | Central Zone | North Zone | Central Zone won by nine wickets | Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur |
| 2005–06 | West Zone | East Zone | West Zone won by five wickets | Sardar Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad |
| 2006–07 | North Zone | Sri Lanka A | North Zone won by eight wickets | Eden Gardens, Kolkata |
| 2007–08 | North Zone | West Zone | North Zone won by six wickets | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai |
| 2008–09 | West Zone | South Zone | West Zone won by 274 runs | MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai |
| 2009–10 | West Zone | South Zone | West Zone won by three wickets | Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium, Hyderabad |
| 2010–11 | South Zone | North Zone | South Zone won by seven wickets | ACA-VDCA Stadium, Visakhapatnam |
| 2011–12 | East Zone | Central Zone | East Zone won by an innings and 20 runs | Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore |
| 2012–13 | East Zone | Central Zone | Draw, East Zone won by first innings lead | M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai |
| 2013–14 | North Zone & South Zone (shared) | North Zone & South Zone (shared) | Draw | Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi |
| 2014–15 | Central Zone | South Zone | Central Zone won by 9 runs | Feroz Shah Kotla Ground, Delhi |
| 2016–17 | India Blue | India Red | India Blue won by 355 runs | Greater Noida Sports Complex Ground, Greater Noida |
| 2017–18 | India Red | India Blue | India Red won by 163 runs | Lucknow International Cricket Stadium, Lucknow |
| 2018–19 | India Blue | India Red | India Blue won by an innings and 187 runs | NPR College Ground, Dindigul |
| 2019–20 | India Red | India Green | India Red won by an innings and 38 runs | M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore |
| 2022–23 | West Zone | South Zone | West Zone won by 294 runs | SNR College Cricket Ground, Coimbatore |
| 2023 | South Zone | West Zone | South Zone won by 75 runs | M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore |
| 2024 | India A | India C | India A won by 132 runs | Rural Development Trust (RDT) Stadium 'B', Anantapur |

## Statistics
### Appearances by team

| Team | Matches | Win | Loss | Draw | Last appearance |
| West Zone | 108 | 56 | 33 | 19 | 2022 |
| North Zone | 106 | 51 | 31 | 24 | 2022 |
| South Zone | 103 | 43 | 38 | 22 | 2022 |
| Central Zone | 97 | 26 | 45 | 26 | 2022 |
| East Zone | 87 | 20 | 45 | 22 | 2022 |
| India Red | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2019 |
| India Blue | 11 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 2019 |
| India Green | 9 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 2019 |
| Elite Group A | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2003 |
| Elite Group B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2003 |
| Elite Group C | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2003 |
| Plate Group A | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2003 |
| Plate Group B | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2003 |
| England A | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2008 |
| Sri Lanka A | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2006 |
| Bangladesh Board XI | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2005 |
| Zimbabwe Board XI | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2005 |
| North East Zone | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2022 |

### Finals appearances by team

| Team | Wins | Appearances | Win % | Last win |
| West Zone | 19 | 33 | 50.00 | 2009/10 |
| North Zone | 18 | 26 | 65.38 | 2013/14 |
| South Zone | 13 | 23 | 52.17 | 2013/14 |
| Central Zone | 6 | 16 | 34.37 | 2014/15 |
| East Zone | 2 | 7 | 28.57 | 2012/13 |
| India Blue | 2 | 3 | 66.67 | 2018/19 |
| India Red | 2 | 4 | 50.00 | 2019/20 |
| Elite C | 1 | 1 | 100.00 | 2002/03 |
| Plate B | 0 | 1 | 0.00 | – |
| Sri Lanka A | 0 | 1 | 0.00 | – |
| India Green | 0 | 1 | 0.00 | – |
Note: The Wins include the shared trophies and the win percentage counts shared as half a win.

### Records and statistics

Batting :
| Most runs | Wasim Jaffer | West Zone, Elite B | 2545 |
| Highest score | Raman Lamba | North Zone | 320 v West Zone (1987/88) |
| Most runs in a tournament | Raman Lamba | North Zone | 659 (1987/88) |
| Highest average | Raman Lamba | North Zone | 86.25 |
| Most ducks | Ashok Dinda | East Zone, India Green, India Red | 8 |
| Most ducks | EAS Prasanna | South Zone | 8 |
| Most ducks | Ashok Mankad | West Zone | 8 |
| Most ducks | Narendra Hirwani | Central Zone, Plate B | 8 |
| Most hundreds | Anshuman Gaekwad | West Zone | 9 |
| Most fifties (and over) | Wasim Jaffer | West Zone, Elite B | 21 |
| Highest partnership | VVS Laxman & Rahul Dravid (3rd wicket) | South Zone | 409 v West Zone |
| Bowling ||||
| Most wickets | Narendra Hirwani | Central Zone, Plate B | 126 |
| Best bowling figures in an innings | Debasis Mohanty | East Zone | 10/46 v South Zone |
| Best bowling figures in a match | Debasis Mohanty | East Zone | 14/91 v South Zone |
| Most wickets in a series | Narendra Hirwani | Plate Group B | 34 (2002/03) |
| Most 5 wickets in an innings | Narendra Hirwani | Central Zone, Plate B | 8 |
| Most 10 wickets in an match | Narendra Hirwani | Central Zone, Plate B | 2 |
| Fielding ||||
| Most dismissals (wicket-keeper) | Parthiv Patel | West Zone, Elite C, India Green | 88 (68 catches and 20 stumpings) |
| Most dismissals in a match (wicket-keeper) | Sameer Dighe | West Zone | 10 (6 catches and 4 stumpings) |
| Most catches (fielder) | Wasim Jaffer | West Zone, Elite B | 41 |
| Team ||||
| Highest score | North Zone | v West Zone | 868 (1987/88) |
| Lowest score | North Zone | v South Zone | 48 (1961) |
| Lowest score | East Zone | v South Zone | 48 (1969) |
| Individual ||||
| Most matches | Mohinder Amarnath | North Zone | 31 (1969–1988) |
| Most matches as captain | Hanumant Singh | Central Zone | 15 (1966–1975) |
| Most matches as captain | Srinivasaraghavan Venkataraghavan | South Zone | 15 (1970–1979) |
| Most matches as an umpire | Suresh Shastri | | 13 (1993–2013) |

### Most runs

| Player | Team(s) | Span | Mat | Inns | Runs | Ave | HS | 100 | 50 |
| Wasim Jaffer | Elite B, West Zone | 1997–2013 | 30 | 54 | 2545 | 55.32 | 173* | 8 | 13 |
| Vikram Rathour | North Zone | 1993–2002 | 25 | 45 | 2265 | 51.47 | 249 | 6 | 11 |
| Anshuman Gaekwad | West Zone | 1974–1987 | 26 | 42 | 2004 | 52.73 | 216 | 4 | 2 |
| Ajay Sharma | North Zone | 1984–1997 | 26 | 37 | 1961 | 57.67 | 202 | 7 | 9 |
| Akash Chopra | Central Zone, North Zone, Elite A | 1997–2011 | 24 | 43 | 1918 | 53.27 | 205* | 6 | 8 |
| Source: ESPNcricinfo ||||||||||

### Most wickets

| Player | Team(s) | Span | Mat | Inns | Wkts | Ave | Econ | SR | BBI | BBM | 5 | 10 |
| Narendra Hirwani | Central Zone, Plate B | 1987–2004 | 29 | 45 | 126 | 34.12 | 2.99 | 68.4 | 7/129 | 12/200 | 8 | 2 |
| Sairaj Bahutule | West Zone, Elite B | 1993–2006 | 30 | 48 | 112 | 26.76 | 2.84 | 56.4 | 6/41 | 9/114 | 4 | 0 |
| B. S. Chandrasekhar | South Zone | 1963–1979 | 24 | 41 | 99 | 24.30 | 2.81 | 51.7 | 8/80 | 10/183 | 7 | 1 |
| Source: ESPNcricinfo |||||||||||||

## Broadcasters

Viacom18 holds the media rights to domestic tournaments, including the Duleep Trophy, from 2023 to 2028; Sports18 is the official television broadcaster, while matches are also streamed for free on the JioCinema platform.